Sippin’ a cuppa on the Terrace

When I was driving to work yesterday morning the sun was shining and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. As I sat at the lights, waiting for the lights to change and trying to avoid breathing in too many bus fumes, my mind wandered to where I might rather be on a morning like this, were my life different.

It was quite a long list, despite the short time I was at the lights: Tahiti, the Maldives and Barbados all said hello, and closer to home, the Evenlode Valley on the edge of the Cotswolds in Oxfordshire near where I used to live is great on a sunny summer day.

Naturally, the South West was there in force.

But I am at heart a realist, and given that one needs a full-time job to survive, my mind fluttered towards places I could nip to for a nice coffee in the morning before work. One place that leapt into my mind was The Terrace.

Known to most Plymothians I’m never sure whether it is really on the tourist trail or not. If you head past the Citadel on the seafront road up towards The Hoe, it is off to the left, near the steps leading into the water that mad people use to get in the Sound for a swim…

The food is pretty standard cafe fare – that’s not to day it is bad, my parents loved it when they came to town – but the best part of the place is the view, a panoramic vista over Plymouth Sound, Mount Edgecombe, Drake Island and the sea. A great place to sip a drink, have a bite to eat and just watch the world go by on a bright and cheerful day. If you’re on the Barbican it is worth a schlep up the hill to.

Here’s a salute to everyone stuck in an office like me today -there in body only…